What makes a semiotician tick? SEMIOVOX’s Josh Glenn has invited his fellow practitioners in the field of commercial semiotics, from around the world, to answer a few revealing questions.

Jeddah…

SEMIOVOX

When you were a child/teen, how did your future fascination with symbols, cultural patterns, interpreting “texts,” and getting beneath the surface of daily life manifest itself?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

I grew up in a very diverse family. My mother’s family has deep roots in Arabia, while my father’s family is originally Indian — though they settled in Arabia a couple of centuries ago. My parents themselves moved around a lot; both of them happen to have been born and educated in Mauritius when it was under British rule.

My mother used to sing to me rhymes in Arabic, English, French, and Urdu. These songs would occasionally include ‘Rule Britania’ and ‘God Save the Queen’. As a child exposed to several languages and cultures, I innately understood that meaning — as conveyed by words, patterns, customs, and so forth — is complex and diverse.

SEMIOVOX

Describe your first encounter(s) with the theory and practice of semiotics.

BIBA ALLARAKIA

I was the first female employee at Procter & Gamble Saudi Arabia, where I led market understanding and qual projects across markets from the Arabian Peninsula to Western Europe. One of my P&G colleagues, Katja Maggio, was instrumental in trying to introduce semiotics within the company — she introduced me to the methodology.

I’d long been fascinated by the gaps in meaning that I’d encountered, both in my studies and in my career. Semiotics provided a structure, terminology, and methodology to explore and articulate those gaps. I appreciated that very much.

SEMIOVOX

How did you find your own way to doing semiotics?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

About fifteen years ago, the British semio agency Space Doctors landed a market insights project that included the Saudi market — in those days, such projects were rare. They struggled to find a semiotician in Saudi Arabia… and then Omar Mahmoud, a former boss of mine, gave them my name. That’s how I met Malcolm Evans.

Although I knew very little about semiotics, I had a high level of expertise in market research across many diverse markets within Saudi Arabia. So Malcolm gave me some training — and that was my first project.

I wouldn’t say that I do semiotics for a living. I see myself as an expert in understanding markets. But semiotics has certainly made me more versatile in my work, and I rely on it frequently.

SEMIOVOX

What are the most important attributes of a good semiotician?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

As I read the previous responses to this question in the Making Sense series, I am amazed by how many attributes can come in handy. But if I had to choose three key attributes, I’d say:

• Understanding the client’s goal.
• Activating your curiosity — and keeping it alive.
• Developing the ability to switch back and forth between a bird’s eye view and a worm’s eye view of the culture you’re exploring.

SEMIOVOX

What three books about semiotics have you found the most useful and enlightening in your own work?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

I haven’t read many books about semiotics. My training has come from doing the work, and reading the occasional essay. In my own practice, I’ve introduced methods and theories from psychology, cultural analysis, and neuroscience. So I’d recommend:

• [The Canadian-American psychologist and neuroscientist] Lisa Feldman Barrett’s How Emotions are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain. Barrett proposes a “constructionist” theory of emotion — in which emotions are mental events constructed by the brain in the moment. They are created, not triggered. Her introduction to psychological construction is very helpful for anyone in understanding themself or others.
• [The American management consultants] Richard Bandler and John Grinder’s Reframing: Neuro-linguistic Programming and the Transformation of Meaning. Bandler and Grinder’s writing on “neuro-linguistic prgramming” helped make me aware of how impactful it can be to transform the way we construe meaning.
• [American marketing theorists] Douglas Holt and Douglas Cameron’s Cultural Strategy: Using Innovative Ideologies to Build Breakthrough Brands. A colleague of mine used this as a textbook when I was teaching International Marketing Strategy at a women’s university in Jeddah. I like the straightforward case studies that illustrate the power of “ideology” (in a wider sense than the term is typically used). I’ve used some of these examples in branding projects since then…

SEMIOVOX

When someone asks you to describe what you do, what is your “elevator pitch”? How do you persuade a skeptical client to take a chance on using this tool?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

“I help clients achieve their business goals by staying connected to the market — in order to understand its cultural nuances.”

If a client wants their brand to do more than merely succeed in the short term, they must connect with consumers and understand them — in ways that cannot be achieved through traditional market research methods. Traditional research asks consumers what they are doing and thinking now… but semiotics goes deeper.

Why is one brand communication working, but not another? I know from long experience that no matter what consumer research technique you use, it’s difficult to get consumers to answer such why questions. Semiotics is helpful in that regard.

Also, in a fast-changing market — like Saudi Arabia right now — traditional research methods don’t offer much in the way about prediction. We can identify trends, but semiotics helps us predict the direction in which trends are headed.

SEMIOVOX

What specific sorts of semiotics-driven projects do you find to be the most enjoyable and rewarding?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

I am most passionate about projects that — by improving inter-cultural communication — serve the greater good. Projects that help us all move in a better direction. Women’s progress is particularly dear to my heart.

SEMIOVOX

What frustrates you about how semiotics is practiced and/or perceived, right now?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

Many semioticians resist the simplification of their language and concepts. This is a shame, as there’s a vast area of untapped potential that we might otherwise reach.

SEMIOVOX

What advice would you give to a young person interested in this sort of work?

BIBA ALLARAKIA

Sure, you can learn semiotics from books and school… but the best way is to learn from a practitioner with whom you’re working. Find a mentor.

MAKING SENSE series: MARTHA ARANGO (Sweden) | MACIEJ BIEDZIŃSKI (Poland) | BECKS COLLINS (England) | WHITNEY DUNLAP-FOWLER (USA) | IVÁN ISLAS (Mexico) | WILLIAM LIU (China) | SÓNIA MARQUES (Portugal) | CHIRAG MEDIRATTA (India / Canada) | SERDAR PAKTIN (Turkey / England) | MARIA PAPANTHYMOU (Greece / Russia) | XIMENA TOBI (Argentina) | & many more.

Also see these series: COVID CODES | SEMIO OBJECTS | MAKING SENSE | COLOR CODEX